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CHAPTER1
“Ijust want to talk.”
I can’t help it. I scoff at my mother-in-law. Choosing to have a conversation in a dark cavern of the Underworld doesn’t exactly scream friendly chat, especially not after luring me here under false pretenses.
Octavia frowns at my reaction. It’s the delicate droop of the corners of her mouth that draws the inappropriate laugh from my own. Once I start, I can’t stop.
She crosses her arms and taps her finger against her bicep in time with her foot. I’ve had the rug pulled out from under me many times in the past twenty-four hours, but having my mother-in-law pose as my lady’s maid wasn’t even a consideration for my bingo card.
And then I’m doubled over as the laughs keep coming and tears are leaking down my face. If I keep laughing like this, I might pee myself too.
“I’m sorry,” I manage to wheeze out, and my dog-guardian, Dave, glances between the two of us.
“Really, Daphne,” Octavia scolds.
“I’m okay,” I assure her before another fit of giggles starts. I straighten up, wiping my eyes. “I’m just—youreallyare a monster-in-law. This is where you’re going to have a little villain’s monologue and make demands of me.” My giggles stop abruptly. “But you forget, Octavia, this ismyrealm. You’re just a guest here.”
My hands reach forward, and I appear to pull on nothingness, but then pieces of plants, roots and the like, emerge from the ceiling and the ground, extending toward Octavia.
“That’s what you think, but you’re always going to be a little girl playing in my sandbox.”
Octavia’s retaliation is swift. With a squeeze of her fist, she cuts off my air. I release the hold on my roots and try to force my fingers between the invisible ones that are severely restricting my oxygen supply. There is no getting between them.
Dave must sense my distress, because I can hear him barking like mad, but the sound is getting farther and farther away until everything goes horrifyingly dark.
* * *
I’mstartled awake by a cool hand on my cheek and for a moment, I think it’s Essos. But then the memory of the morning comes rushing in and I flinch back. It’s not Essos. It’s Octavia.
The last twenty-four hours have been a whirlwind, and being face-to-face with my mother-in-law might be the straw that breaks the proverbial camel’s back.
“Welcome back to the land of the living, Phoenix Queen.”
From my vantage point on the ground, I glance around the cavern. I can feel a soreness through my body from when I landed on the damp ground. “I think this is still the realm of the dead,” I point out. Dave is beside me, having placed himself between me and the Goddess Supreme. I don’t know when I last saw her in the flesh, but seeing her now can’t be good news.
“Are you capable of being compliant for once in your life? Mygodsyou’ve been a thorn in my side ever since you agreed to go to dinner with Essos.”
I sit up slowly, aware of how woozy I feel. I hope she didn’t deprive me of oxygen for long, but still, my hand brushes my abdomen. Essos was right—I need to worry about more than just myself now.
“As Goddess of Spring, thorns come with the territory,” I point out, which earns me a dry look. Despite my assault, the six-foot-tall goddess looks unruffled. My dog, however, looks like he’s ready to tear her limb from limb despite whatever role she might have played in his creation.
“If you would stop being so fucking dramatic, you would know that I was coming tohelp. After all, you have a few problems to solve, such as the gates to the Underworld being slammed shut and the veil between the realms being ripped open.”
I want to scoff again—the idea that the gates to the Underworld are closed is absurd—but it offers an explanation as to why it feels so empty down here, even though souls have surely passed during the time since Posey revealed herself as the source of our problems.
We knew that Posey didsomethingto the souls of the dead. I thought it was as simple as collecting them and sending them back to the mortal realm, but clearly, it’s more. My hand goes to the cut on my neck where she nicked me with the God Killer blade. She cut Essos too, when she snatched the scepter from him. Was that intentional? Did she do something to seal the gates of the Underworld so no souls can enter?
I have to hear how Octavia thinks she can help. I get to my feet, bolstered by Dave gluing himself to me. “You have my attention, Octavia. Don’t waste it, because once Essos arrives, there will be no hearing you out.”
“Might I point out thatyouwere the one wasting time? Instead of being my ally, now you have to be my pawn.” She smooths her hands over the front of her white dress, and a bolt of unease makes my hair stand on end.
“I am no one’s pawn, Octavia.”
She looks me over, blue eyes critical. “From what I’ve seen, that’s all you are. A pawn between my sons. A pawn for a Fate. I want you to bring back my son. I’m asking you nicely. I’ve already taken the necessary steps to ensure he has a body to return to.”
“That doesn’t feel like a ‘nicely’ sort of request. That feels like a demand.” A cool sweat is breaking out on my skin. I taste bile in the back of my throat at just theideaof resurrecting the God of War and Suffering. I don’t care that he’s her son. I don’t care that he’s my husband’s brother. I don’t care why she wants me to bring him back.
Galen murdered me, and for the first time in ages, I’m free of the threat he posed to me. I’m free of my fear of him. Bringing Galen back is not an option.
